And there just might be. One of the great virtues of Dean's flame-out in this race is that the leading candidate for the nomination, Kerry, and the possible, though not very likely alternative, Edwards, are both candidates who are basically acceptable to all wings of the party, especially the traditionally feuding New Democrat and liberal wings.

It wasn't so long ago (a month?) that the DLC was launching polemic after polemic against the dread forces of Mondale-McGovernism (chiefly Dean and maybe Gephardt too if they were in a particularly surly mood) which were taking over the Democratic party and leading it down the road to perdition and certain defeat. Never mind that there was a lot more to Dean and Deanism than that--the battle was joined and all the players reported to their appointed places to cudgel one another mercilessly.

If Dean had become the nominee, the kind of party unity the Democrats need might very well have been lacking. Combine that with the fact that Dean in important ways was not the Democrats' strongest general election candidate and the stage was set for an unending round of finger-pointing and blood-letting.

But we've dodged that bullet. Both Kerry and Edwards should be able to do the necessary job of synthesizing the approaches of different wings of the party into a strong general election message that all will feel enthusiastic about supporting. A message like, say......"a positive, middle-class populism".

Whose phrase? Why Al From's, of course, used to describe Kerry's and Edward's campaign messages. This from a man who used to shrink from the word "populism" like it was a deadly poison. Now to the untutored eye it might appear that Kerry's populism (good!, according to Chairman Al) and Gore's populism (bad!, according to Chairman Al) seem to share much in common and even some of the same phrases.

But what the heck. Who's counting. What From is really signalling here is that Kerry's mix of messages, which will include both populism (as it should) and positive, forward-looking programs (as it should) will be acceptable to him, even if Kerry isn't quite a card-carrying New Democrat.

In fact, the DLC appears willing to make him (and Edwards and even Clark) honorary members simply for not being Howard Dean! In their broadside today, they annoint all three of them as having "solid New Democrat credentials".

Well, DR doesn't know if they do. He doesn't even care. But provided we get everyone on board for the Kerry (or Edwards) candidacy, such pronouncements--from any wing of the party--are perfectly OK. For peace in the valley, DR's willing to put up with a certain amount of BS.